"Now Listen to Me..."
Just some thoughts on current happenings:
There are two recommended video releases this month. Both are Blu-rays scheduled for release on July 8.
Point Blank (1967) is a trance-induced expression of a cold, violent, terminator-like man on a mission.
Its hypnotic hold over us comes, in part, from the fact that we're not really sure if the protagonist, the aptly named Walker (most persuasively played by Lee Marvin), is really doing what we see or just dreaming in his dying moments. Allegory extends from Point Blank’s beginning (a deserted Alcatraz prison) to end (an equally desolate Fort Point) locations. * A Hades-like Walker shows no fear while transversing L.A.’s mythical underworld. And why should he? What can anyone do to someone who’s already dead? His hardened resolve to take back what he feels is rightfully his, is matched by his harsh, impersonal surroundings vividly and accurately portrayed as a sea of suburbs with no real heart or centre: just a vast number of business enterprises whose only concern, like Walker's, is to secure the almighty dollar. Oddly enough, throughout his entire violently penalising odyssey Walker (referenced by several other characters as already dead) will not directly dispatch anyone though the body count around him steadily increases: an anomaly suggesting his walk of vengeance may just be an illusion. Also supporting this interpretation would be Walker’s inability to resolve any major conflict satisfactorily which would include, most tellingly, his journey’s conclusion [***Spoilers***] when he cannot take what he previously tried so hard to get which again, backs the idea that Walker is either an apparition or a product of his imagination. Further reinforcement of this idea is offered by Philip Lathrop's often hallucinogenic photography, edited to perfection by Henry Berman, along with Johnny Mandel's atonal score with its strange ghostly sounds. Either way, real or imagined, John Boorman's expressionistic tale is just like its title: resolute, captivating and unforgettable. This Neo-noir classic has more style than New York Fashion Week and is available on a stunning region-free Blu-ray from Warner Bros Home Video.
* [***Spoilers***] From this final location at Fort Point, the camera will pan over to focus on Alcatraz Island where Walker’s cold-blooded odyssey began and, just like that, may have ended, perhaps suggesting he may still be there in some form or another.
#Edit: As of February 28, 2023, I have more thoughts to share on Point Blank in Part 2 of a “Make or Remake” article here.
Then there's Max Ophuls' brilliant 1949 noir Caught.
This compelling character exploration delves deep into a slowly deteriorating marriage between its heroine, the lonely car-hop Leonora Eames sensitively portrayed by Barbara Bel Geddes, and her newly-wedded husband Smith Ohlrig, a megalomaniac millionaire perfectly tailored for Robert Ryan. Its style combines the best of a Douglas Sirk melodrama with an Orson Welles flair for dark and disturbing narrative surprises. The Blu-ray from Olive Films (Region A locked) is a moderately satisfying transfer of this 1949 film and well worth having.
To purchase either of the above two titles from Amazon U.S., simply click on the corresponding image.
For July, the recommended CD Soundtrack is Alfred Newman's dynamically driven score to the film Airport (1970).
This CD has long been out of print, but is now currently available on the Japanese MCA label from Screen Archives Entertainment. It can be ordered by clicking on the image. Screen Archives ships worldwide.
There are two recommendations for those enjoying Turner Classic Movies in the U.S. this July:
The first is 1953's Barbara Stanwyck noir Jeopardy (and no, Alex Trebek is not in it).
Stanwyck is sensational and so are co-stars Barry Sullivan as her husband in peril and Ralph Meeker as a killer on the run. A fascinating premise begins an unpredictably suspenseful narrative that only gets more potent as the story reaches its conclusion, a finale which comes as a bombshell considering Jeopardy was made during the Production Code. I've mentioned this psychological thriller (with spoilers) in an article entitled: Exploring the Artefacts #3: Code Breakers. Director John (Bad Day at Black Rock) Sturges’ masterful presentation of suspense and intensified emotion can be experienced on TCM (updated) Tuesday, July 11 (2023) at 5:15 am PDT.
Confirmation can be checked by clicking on the film’s image, the time zone for which can be adjusted in the upper right-hand corner of TCM's schedule.
Then there's Ingmar Bergman's masterpiece from 1955: the exquisite romantic-comedy Smiles of a Summer Night, one of the finest motion pictures ever made (listed in my Top Ten: World Cinema Treasures). This is scheduled to show on TCM Monday, July 28 at 5:00 pm PST. TCM's programming for the month can be viewed by clicking on the image.
A.G.